


Èze

by spacemonkey



Category: U2
Genre: F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-23
Updated: 2015-09-23
Packaged: 2018-04-23 01:15:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4857626
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spacemonkey/pseuds/spacemonkey
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bono and Edge spend a night alone in Èze. Set in 1999</p>
            </blockquote>





	Èze

“It’s lovely here tonight,” Bono murmured, and the tone of his voice told Edge so much that he had to stop and just picture it all. He could hear nothing else on the phone but Bono’s breath, calm and steady, and he knew that Bono was likely on the balcony, likely taking in the ocean with a drink by his side, likely that there was no wind or rain. “The moon is gigantic above the water, Edge. Is it full there?”

“Of course it is.” Edge pulled back the curtains still just to look, but he couldn’t see the moon, just the clouds and the trees blowing sideways in the rain. “We might lose power soon, by the looks of it.”

“Would that be so bad? I don’t even have the light on, it’s just me and the moon.” Bono laughed, and it came through thickly, and Edge listened to the rain, listened to the little pitter patter of tiny feet go past the door, and he could barely picture the moon. “You should be here now, you know.”

“I’ll be there tomorrow night,” Edge said.

“I know, but you should be here now.” Bono sighed, his breath harshing through the line. “It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

“What has?”

“Since you and I were alone together.” His voice had taken a dangerous turn, and Edge instinctively reached out and shut the door firmly.  “And you know when I say alone together, I don’t mean a few hours here and there.”

“I know that.”

“I think it will do you good, a couple of days breathing some different air away from it all.” Bono coughed, cleared his throat and Edge found himself looking at the locked door, wondering why he’d even bothered.

“Sounds like it’s doing you well.”

“I’m not sick.”

“I didn’t say you were.” The lights flickered quickly and Edge braced himself, but the power stayed on.  “Do you need me to bring anything?”

“Just that big cock of yours.”

Edge rolled his eyes at the words, at the way Bono had tapered off towards the end with a wheeze that had started as a laugh and continued as a cough before ending somewhere in between. “You’re not as smooth as you think you are.”

“I know,” Bono said ruefully. “It sounded so much sexier in my head when I thought of it before you called.”

Edge smiled. “I might just spend the entire trip reading and watching television, you know.”

“I’ll put up a fuss, you know I will.”

Edge knew, he knew all too well, and he wanted to laugh, wanted to agree but Bono just sounded too tired that instead he set his feet back down to the ground and sighed. “I have to go give Sian a bath before bedtime.”

“A bath sounds wonderful.”

“I’m not giving you a bath, Bono. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He didn’t wait for the answer, just hung up the phone with a sense of victory. It rang again seconds later and he answered it quickly. “What?”

“Bye,” Bono said and the dial tone sounded. Edge set the phone back down, shaking his head as he left the room.

He slept badly that night, tossing and turning without knowing why, and he got out of bed early and took a long shower and made eggs for the household. He packed slowly, knowing he had hours still, and he did throw in a couple of books and even a couple of videos. He tucked in a notepad and some pens and picks, and picked up his guitar case as Morleigh watched him. It all went in the car, and he kissed them all goodbye and went on his way.

It was not a long flight by any means and he spent it looking out the window, looking as the clouds slowly disappeared as he got closer and closer. His leg jiggled in his seat, and it continued off and on until he was standing at the door with the sun beating down on his back as he slid his key in.

The house was quiet, though he could hear the faint drone of the television coming from upstairs, and Edge set his things by the door and went and poured himself a glass of water in the kitchen. He drank it slowly and leaned over the sink as he splashed his face. He looked at Bono’s dishes, unwashed on the counter, and tried to figure out what exactly Bono had been eating. Coffee and toast was the first thing to come to mind, though there was a bowl that had the remnants of milk in it too. He looked at the empty wine glass, then opened the cupboard below and saw the empty wine bottles next to the bin, and he gathered his bag and his guitar case before slowly trudging up the stairs.

There was an old episode of M.A.S.H on the tv by the wall, and Edge stared at it. It was the television from the guest room and Edge was surprised to see it in Bono’s bedroom. He’d never been one to lie in bed and take in a show or three, and it was propped up on a fucking chair. Edge turned from the television to look at Bono, curled tightly under the white sheets and fast asleep. Edge took in the rise and fall of his chest, the curl of his hand up close to his face, and he set his things down and leaned in and kissed his cheek gently. Bono didn’t wake, and found himself feeling almost glad as he took off his shoes and unzipped his bag. He opened some drawers and put some things away, and he turned off the tv when an ad came on. He could hear Bono better now, hear his breathing, and he closed the drawers and took his jacket off then slipped in under the sheets.

He dozed for a while but couldn’t make it last, so he shuffled over to his bag and pulled out a book. He stretched out on the bed and puffed up his pillows, and started to read some Tolstoy. It was heavy, the weight of the book and the writing, and he found himself flipping back and rereading a few pages before lowering the book to his chest.

Bono was looking at him with sleepy eyes, and Edge smiled back at him. “Morning.”

Bono reached out a hand and tapped at the cover of Edge’s book. “War and Peace?” He yawned, his back coming up from the bed in a full body stretch, and he settled back against the covers with a sigh. “Why?”

“It made me think of you.”

Bono gave him a sidelong look, and he smirked. It didn’t reach his eyes and he looked worn and rumpled in a way that Edge didn’t like. “The title or the content?”

“Well, I’ve not read the book yet, so I wouldn’t know.”

Bono slapped him lightly on the chest before swinging his legs over the side of the bed. “I’m mostly peaceful,” he mumbled on his way to the bathroom.

“We’ll see,” Edge called once the door was closed. There was a pause and then he heard the toilet flush, and he expected Bono to come back out, but instead the shower started. Edge settled back into the bed, patient for his welcome and waiting for the sounds of Bono showering, the familiar hums and random tunes that went up and down in volume, and they came quietly after a while, in a way that made Edge wonder if Bono knew what was expected of him. Edge turned his face towards the bathroom door and listened to the nameless tune with sounds for lyrics and it sounded so forlorn and yet Edge found himself smiling.

Bono left the bathroom looking fresher and he kneeled into the bed and kissed Edge, tasting of minty toothpaste and so much more. He smiled against Edge’s lips and stroked his neck and he sighed and turned his head till his cheek brushed Edge’s. “You look like Dublin,” he said, and pulled away until he was standing over the bed and looking down at Edge.

Edge had to grin up at him, but there was a frown on Bono’s face that gave him pause. “Give me time.”

Bono nodded. He shifted his weight from foot to foot and reached down to take Edge’s hand. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

It came naturally to Edge, the cooking while Bono puttered around here and there looking like he was trying to be helpful, and Edge shooed him away more than once before forcing him to do the dishes and pour the wine. They ate pasta at the table, and it wasn’t Edge’s best effort but he’d been distracted, and Bono didn’t complain. He chewed slowly and set his fork down with finality a couple of times before picking it back up and continuing, and Edge went on about his kids and his ideas for some new songs and Bono nodded and smiled, but was quiet. His throat bobbed as he drank, and he cleared it roughly as he set his glass down. Edge tapped his finger on the table and Bono looked at him expectantly, waiting for it. “You’re quiet.”

“It’s good to be quiet sometimes,” Bono said.

Edge had brought a couple of videos from back home, thinking he could pull them out while Bono was anticipating him doing something much, much different, but there was cloud around the moon and it felt like the night for it, so Edge slipped in a copy of The Truman Show. He’d seen it in the cinemas with Adam and enjoyed it so much he’d bought the video once it had become available, and he’d thought that Bono might get a kick out of seeing the world revolve around another person.

Bono stayed quiet by his side, restless in a way that Edge recognized, and they made it well over the hour mark before Bono got up and left the room. Edge didn’t bother pausing and he half watched the movie, waiting for Bono to return. He waited and waited and eventually hit the stop button and went searching.

He found Bono out on the balcony, sitting on the railing with his fingers gripping tightly and his legs hanging over the edge. He’d turned only one of the outside lights on and it illuminated Bono’s back in such a way that the whole view looked like something out of an arty film. “What are you doing?” Edge asked and Bono didn’t answer. “Did the movie hit a nerve?” He walked closer until he was pressed against the railing and Bono looked at him, confused.

“What?”

“What are you doing?” Edge asked again.

Bono shrugged and looked back ahead. Edge looked at him, looked at the slump of his shoulders before following his gaze. The sea looked black but for the glow of the moon and the gentle roll of it was soothing. He caught the small smile on Bono’s face out the corner of his eye. “Could you hold my hand?”

“Why?” Edge asked, but he reached out without even thinking and Bono’s smile grew wider. His fingers were cold.

“To keep us from falling.” Bono said it like it was a well-known fact that Edge should have known, and Edge shook his head and stepped in closer. He wrapped his right arm around Bono waist and gripped Bono’s left hand tighter, and Bono sighed and lolled his head to the side. “What are you going to do to me tonight?”

“You know what.”

“Tell me.”

Edge went to tell him exactly, to explain in well thought out detail until Bono was so pliant in his arms that Edge could pull him back and direct him straight through the door to tend to the burn, but the words caught in his throat and instead he leaned in and pressed his mouth softly to Bono’s shoulder. Bono’s fingers danced under Edge’s and Edge smiled, and he expected something different than what he got. “I love it here,” Bono murmured. “I love the ocean, Edge.”

“I know you do.”

“Do you remember when we bought this place?” Bono asked, like it had been decades instead of a handful of years. He leaned forward and wobbled, and Edge tightened his grip.

“Would you come down, please?”

“I remember standing here on this balcony and looking out at the sea and wishing I could own at least part of it with you, but it belonged to God. The best we could do was own this house and look out at it.” He smiled, and then he turned and Edge helped him get his legs over the side and land on his own two feet, and there was nothing graceful about it. Edge held him a moment longer before following Bono further in. They sat down on the chairs and Bono looked at the sky, the view of the ocean taken from him. The moon was half hidden by the clouds, and it was enormous, but Edge knew the sight of it was nothing compared to the night before. “We’re so small compared to it, aren’t we?” Bono mused, his hand coming up to gesture to the moon. Edge nodded, and Bono’s hand came back down. It gripped Edge’s tightly, so tightly that Edge pulled his gaze from the moon to look at him. Bono didn’t look back, and he squeezed once more before releasing. “I thought I was dying, Edge.”

“What?”

Bono shrugged. “Only for a moment when I allowed myself to be melodramatic.”

“Bono-”

“When I went to the doctor about my throat.” Bono looked at him then, and he smiled. “They thought I might have throat cancer. I didn’t tell you that, I didn’t even tell Ali. It all worked out in the end, but there was a moment there, Edge, where I thought the worst.”

Edge took in a breath, and it felt wrong. He sat up in his seat and swung his feet until he was facing Bono. “Why didn’t you tell anyone?”

“Why do I do anything?” Bono laughed, and his hands came up to rub at his face. He ran them through his hair and looked back at the sky. “I’m not afraid to die, you know. I look around at the world and realize that none of us have any control over it. It makes me feel a bit calmer about myself, but when I think of you all-” He shook his head and smiled at Edge. “Wonderful, isn’t it? I call you out here with a completely different thought and then pile all of this on you.”

Edge didn’t respond. He was still stuck on Bono’s words, on the thought of it all, and he barely noticed when Bono sat up and turned to him. He felt Bono’s hands slide around his own and looked up at Bono’s face, his eyes bright against the sparse light of the balcony. “I’ve been stuck with my thoughts for a couple of days,” Bono said quietly, and Edge nodded. He drew Bono in by his hands and kissed him slow, kissed him gentle and pulled his hand from Bono’s grip to grasp at his chin, his cheek before settling into soft hair.

“That’s never a good thing,” Edge said once they were parted and he stayed close to Bono’s mouth, ready to move back in with leisure. “That’s often a very bad thing.”

“Hmm.” Bono ran his tongue over his lower lip and smiled. He tilted his head until their foreheads were pressed together, and Edge could feel the warmth of his breath ghosting over his chin. “It’s a good thing you came then.”

“It is,” Edge agreed. He couldn’t shake the feeling though, the feeling of wrongness radiating from Bono and he looked to the turn of his mouth and the rise of his chest and hoped that he had the cure. “Do you want to know what I’m going to do to you tonight?”

“Tell me,” Bono murmured.

Edge turned his head until his mouth was pressed against Bono’s ear, and he whispered the words like they weren’t alone, like they were in a crowded room with people straining to hear, and he dragged them out until Bono’s breath quickened and his grip tightened on Edge’s hand. They stumbled out of the moonlight and fell into bed, and Bono moaned and when Edge touched him he arched his back and asked for more. It was the expression on Bono’s face that told Edge he was exactly where he was supposed to be, and he waited until Bono smiled back before kissing him and giving him what he wanted.


End file.
